April 30th, 2010 | 
Author: France is the second most popular destination for British tourists, according to the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA).
Despite a drop in the number of people looking to book a French holiday, the statistics show it is still a very popular area with tourists.
The most loved French destination was Paris, which draws tourists who are attracted by the culture and landmarks of the capital such as the Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysée and Arc de Triomphe.
Dordogne was another of the destinations noted for its popularity. Perhaps it’s the region’s picture-perfect countryside, its culinary heritage (fois gras and the black truffle hail from Dordogne) or the hundreds of castles that attract floods of visitors each year.
Another popular area attracting thousands of tourists is the Cote d’Azur. Known synonymously with the French Riviera, it’s still the playground of the rich and beautiful, bordering with St Tropez, Monte Carlo and Cannes. The lavish lifestyles of the past aristocracy also make the Loire Valley and appealing area for visitors, which has been listed as a World Heritage site by UNESCO
ABTA believes people are still enamoured with France because of it’s diversity and good value for money; there are a number of destinations on offer to suit various budgets.
Sean Tipton, ABTA spokesman, said that passengers are likely to head to the south of France because it’s often less expensive to fly here than take a train. He said: “In terms of visitor numbers from the UK it”s only a few years ago that Spain overtook France as the number one most popular foreign holiday destination and it is still number two.”
In 2008, France was the most visited country in the world, with almost 80 million international tourists. Paris was the single most visited city in the world in the same year, with 15.6 million visitors.
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